By Ray Przekurat, District Administrator
Today (Oct. 7), the Iola-Scandinavia School District received guidance from the Waupaca County Health Department that based on a significant increased number of confirmed cases of COVID-19, the safest path forward is to temporarily close our MS/HS building on Monday, October 12th 2020 to prevent further spread. At this point, there are four known cases and three pending cases in our district. Our Elementary will remain in-person due to the cohort model we have been using since the start of the school year.
This change was also determined by our transition decision framework that was developed in partnership with the Superintendents in Waupaca County, the Waupaca County Health Department, our reopening committee, and our school board.
Beginning Monday, Oct. 12, we will move forward with remote/at-home learning in grades 7-12. We expect this model to remain in place for at least two weeks. At that point, we will re-evaluate the situation and determine if we can safely reopen our school building. It is our hope that this is a temporary measure.
We will be sending out a separate communication on how we will be handling co-curricular activities during this virtual educational model.
I know this is disappointing news. However, the health, safety, and well-being of our school community remains our top priority. We are following sound protocols aligned with expert health guidance to ensure we are doing everything we can to minimize risk and ensure the learning process can continue.
Please continue to watch for the primary symptoms of COVID-19, which include shortness of breath, coughing, and fever or chills. Other symptoms include congestion, sore throat, diarrhea, abdominal pain, body aches, and loss of taste or smell. If you or your child begins to experience symptoms, please consult a healthcare provider and notify the school office.
While we know remote learning is not optimal, we are working hard to ensure a high-quality learning experience for all students and that connections between and among students and teachers continue. As always, thank you for your patience and understanding as we navigate this difficult situation.
Co-Curricular info
According to the All Virtual Education Model distributed by the district, “If the Iola-Scandinavia Middle/High School Academic programs go fully virtual due to new multiple positive student cases, athletics will be postponed during the time period the school is all virtual.”
Cross country, football, and volleyball will continue to follow and adhere to the COVID-19 precautionary measures that have been established by the WIAA.
Forensics/DECA/FCCLA will be virtual.